As soon as I got home, a torrential downpour began, splashing onto the ground and kicking up clouds of dust. The air was filled with the smell of mud, but it did make the air feel cooler.
Zhao Mingyue took another shower and changed into dry clothes. Everyone was waiting for her to eat. Zhao Mingyue was scolded by her mother: "Mingyue, you are not allowed to bathe in the river anymore. You are still a girl. This is not proper."
Zhao Mingyue laughed: "I know, Mom. I didn't want to go either, but they dragged me there."
Zhao Minglang said, "It's nothing to take a shower; everyone's going."
"Just because others go doesn't mean you can go too!" Hu Nianchun glared at his son.
Zhao Mingyue smiled and comforted her mother, "I won't go anymore."
It was raining and windy outside, making the kerosene lamp sway. Zhao Mingyue quickly covered it with a glass lampshade: "Dad, are we going to keep watch tonight?"
Zhao Shunsheng said, "Go, we have to go and keep an eye on things."
After the rice was harvested, it was laid out to dry on the threshing floor. In the evening, people would gather the rice, which had been drying all day, into cone-shaped piles, and cover them with reed mats or straw to protect them from rain and dew. The production team would assign people to keep watch at night. In those days, everyone was starving, and if they didn't keep watch, some unscrupulous people would probably take it all home and fill their own pockets.
Zhao Mingyue listened to the wind and rain outside: "No one should steal it on a rainy day, right? The millet is all wet, what's the point of carrying it back?"
Zhao Shunsheng said, "You think no one wants wet stuff? They're so desperate they'll do anything."
Hu Nianchun lowered his voice and said, "Last year, during the rice harvest, there was a torrential rain. It was Luo Wu's turn to watch the field. He thought that no one would steal because of the rain, but when he woke up in the morning, he found that several loads of rice were missing. Later, Wang Changfu's family ate fried rice for a long time."
Zhao Mingyue looked puzzled: "Fried rice?"
Zhao Minglang looked at his sister and smiled: "The stolen millet was wet, so we didn't dare to take it out to dry. We could only dry it in a pot. Do you understand?"
Zhao Mingyue's mouth dropped open: "There's such a thing?"
"Luo Wu was quite unlucky; he was fined a load of grain," Hu Nianchun said.
Zhao Mingyue said, "Since everyone knows that Wang Changfu stole it, why don't you go find him?"
“I didn’t know at the time. Later, someone noticed that they often ate fried rice at home, and that’s when they guessed that it was him who did it,” Hu Nianchun said.
Zhao Shunsheng coughed and said, "Stop talking so much, hurry up and eat. After you eat, we'll go check out the site."
After dinner, the heavy rain continued to pour down, with lightning and thunder that never stopped. Zhao Shunsheng and Zhao Minglang, wearing straw hats and raincoats and carrying flashlights—tools provided by the production team—went to the threshing ground to guard the grain.
Hearing the pouring rain outside, Zhao Mingyue couldn't help but worry about her father and brothers. She had been reading under the lamp for over an hour, but decided she should go check on them. When she went outside, she found her mother still sitting in the main room: "Mom, why aren't you asleep yet?"
Hu Nianchun said, "I'm a little worried about your dad and your brother. Why isn't the rain stopping?"
“It’s much smaller now, it’s alright, Dad and Third Brother are watching over it,” Zhao Mingyue comforted her mother.
Hu Nianchun said, "That's the trouble with rainy days; there's nowhere to sit."
If it's sunny, you can sleep right in the middle of the threshing ground at night, but if it rains, you'll probably have to stand on the threshing ground all night.
Zhao Mingyue said, "Mom, if you're worried, let's go take a look."
Hu Nianchun nodded: "Okay."
The mother and daughter found straw hats and raincoats and put them on. Zhao Mingyue took a lantern, put on straw sandals, and went out with her mother, illuminating the way. The rain had lessened considerably and looked like it would stop soon.
Upon arriving at the threshing ground, Zhao Mingyue saw a flashlight beam moving and guessed that her father and brother were there. Zhao Shunsheng shone his flashlight in Zhao Mingyue's direction and asked, "Who's there?"
Zhao Mingyue said, "Dad, it's me and Mom. How is it?"
Zhao Shunsheng said angrily, "Which son of a bitch carried a load of grain away before we arrived? It was in that pile at the very edge. I checked it after we finished harvesting the grain. When I came, the straw in that pile had been lifted up, a lot of it had been scooped away, and some of it had been washed away by the heavy rain. Damn it, are they really desperate for money? They only have time for one meal."
Hu Nianchun's expression immediately changed: "Did the captain see that?"
“Of course there is. I just arrived, and the team leader arrived too. We checked together.” Zhao Shunsheng sighed.
Zhao Mingyue said, "Aren't there any clues? Since they stole the grain, and it was at night, there might be some grain on the ground. Let's look around and maybe we can find some clues."
Zhao Minglang said, "With such heavy rain, anything that was there would definitely have been washed away. Besides, it's pitch black here, where would we even begin to look?"
Zhao Mingyue said, "That's not certain. We'll see where it can go by tomorrow morning. We need to find it before the chickens are released, otherwise it will be eaten by the chickens and we won't have any left."
So that night, the family barely slept, waiting for dawn. If the thief wasn't found, Zhao Mingyue's family would have to compensate for the loss of that load of grain. They didn't even have enough food to eat right now, and losing that load would only make things worse.
Before dawn, Zhao Mingyue got up. The rain had stopped outside. Zhao Mingyue ran to the threshing ground and began to look for clues. Actually, it was quite easy to determine the direction. Since he was stealing grain in that corner, it must be a household in that direction. A person who steals grain wouldn't go to such lengths. Zhao Mingyue was certain that the person didn't have the strength or intelligence, and besides, there wasn't enough time for him to create a diversion, especially since he had to avoid being seen by everyone.
Zhao Mingyue indeed discovered the traces. Since it was nighttime and she was a thief, she dared not light a lamp, could not see while walking, and was also feeling guilty and flustered. It was normal for the millet to spill out.
Zhao Mingyue quickly called Zhao Minglang, and the two siblings followed the scattered grains of rice, eventually finding Wang Changfu's house. Zhao Mingyue laughed, "It really is him. He tasted the sweetness of success last year, didn't he?"
Zhao Minglang said, "Shall we go in and ask?"
"No, hurry and go find the captain. We need to be quick."
Before the team leader arrived, the door to Wang Changfu's house opened. When Wang Changfu saw Zhao Mingyue, he was taken aback: "What are you doing at my house, Mingyue?"
Zhao Mingyue smiled and said, "I'm looking for something."
Zhao Minglang, along with Zhao Shunsheng and the team leader, had already searched along the millet field. Wang Changfu's expression immediately became somewhat uneasy. Wang Qiulan's mother, Tang Jiumei, also came out, carrying a chicken coop to release the chickens. Zhao Mingyue said, "Aunt Jiu, let's release them later."
Tang Jiumei was thin and sallow, looking like someone addicted to opium. This woman was a sorceress, someone who specialized in charlatanry, but after the Cultural Revolution, all superstitious activities were banned, and Tang Jiumei lost her mystique, becoming no different from an ordinary person. She paused, then asked, "What?"
Wang Changfu said, "What are you doing? Hurry up and release your chickens." He probably knew what was going on, so he quickly went over to help release the chickens so that they could destroy the evidence.
But the team leader had already reached his doorstep. The scattered grains, though few, were enough to serve as evidence. The team leader stood at Wang Changfu's door: "Changfu, busy?"
Wang Changfu quickly put on a smile: "Captain, what brings you here?"
The team leader's face turned serious: "Changfu, our production team's grain was stolen last night. They didn't even cover it up properly, and a lot of the rest was washed away."
Wang Changfu's face stiffened, and his lips twitched: "Who, who is so bold?"
The team leader looked at Wang Changfu and said, "I saw the millet scattered all the way from the threshing ground to your doorstep, so I'm going to check your house now." In those days, there was little legal awareness, and the team leader supposedly didn't have any search authority, but since he said he was going, Wang Changfu didn't dare to stop him.
As they were talking, several of the Wang family's children came out, forming a long line at the doorway. The family had quite a few children, six in total. Wang Qiulan, her hair unkempt and disheveled, stood blocking the entrance with her younger siblings. When the team leader entered, the entire Wang family stared at him like predatory wolves.
Zhao Shunsheng and Zhao Minglang followed them inside, while Zhao Mingyue stood outside the door. Wang Qiulan looked at Zhao Mingyue and said through gritted teeth, "Zhao Mingyue, what do you mean?"
Zhao Mingyue said, "It's nothing. The team lost some grain last night, and I'm going to find the missing grain based on the clues."
"So you found my house?" Wang Qiulan's eyes were blazing with fury, as if she wanted to burn Zhao Mingyue to death.
Zhao Mingyue said, "I'm not targeting anyone personally. I'm only looking for evidence. If you didn't steal anything, then it has nothing to do with you."
Zhao Mingyue was waiting outside when she heard Zhao Minglang say loudly, "Found it! It's right here, the valley is still wet."
The Wang family members all turned deathly pale.
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